Juventus midfielder Marchisio on road

Turin, June 17 (IANS) Juventus star midfielder Claudio Marchisio said that he cannot wait to get back to the football field as he is stepping up his rehabilitation following surgery on a torn cruciate ligament in April.

The 30-year-old on Thursday admitted that he has found it tough to miss out on the club’s end-of-season celebrations and the European Championship, but can at least console himself by the welcome news that his recovery regime is proceeding well.

“My recovery is coming along nicely. I feel in good nick, my rehabilitation is going according to plan and I can’t wait to get back running with my team-mates,” Marchisio was quoted as saying by club’s official website on Thursday.

“It wasn’t easy to miss out on the end-of-season celebrations with my team-mates, while sat on the sofa watching the Euros is also a wrench. I’m Italy’s biggest fan and hope we go as far as possible,” the Italy international added, during the launch of his book “Nero su Bianco” here.

While Marchisio’s recovery continued to go from strength to strength, so did his club in the transfer market.

This week’s arrival of playmaker Miralem Pjanic from Roma equipped head coach Massimiliano Allegri with another smart operator in the middle of the park, adding extra creativity and guile to an already formidable midfield unit.

Pjanic completed a permanent switch from Roma for a fee of 32 million euros ($35.9 million) on Monday.

Welcoming the arrival, Marchisio added: “He’s (Pjanic) a magnificent player and I can’t wait for him to play alongside us.

“It’s an excellent acquisition, bolstering an already top-rate squad that has improved on year on year thanks to the capture of players such as Pjanic, someone who is capable of changing a game by himself.”